Topics Related to Underwater Archaeology

Sec. Kluttz speaks at the QAR lab anniversary

 


They say it takes a village to raise a child, but it turns out that it takes a village to raise a 300-year-old shipwreck from the depths of the ocean too!

After the weekend, we returned to site with the focus of separating the individual elements that make up the pile. A large anchor, A2, lies atop 8 cannon. With such a large concentration of iron, the cannon and anchor have concreted together to form one massive concretion – too large to recover all together. To recover artifacts from the pile we need to separate them. We began this work this week.

By Kimberly Kenyon, QAR Conservator Some of the highlights from the second part of August include the discovery of a previously unknown cannon under a large concretion and the raising and transport of several large concretions. Here’s an overview:Week 3: August 19-23

The opening of a field season is always busy, and this year proved to be no exception. In our first two weeks of work, the team focused mostly on setup, laying out gridlines and placing sandbags around the perimeter of new excavation units. We recovered some artifacts, too. Here’s a brief overview:Week 1: August 5-9

Cultural Resources Sec. Susan Kluttz was one of the first people in almost 300 years to see cannons used on Blackbeard’s flagship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, as they were recovered from the seafloor late last week. The raising of the two cannons was the culmination of the spring dive season led by state archaeologists in concert with a number of partners and supporters. She was thrilled to be able to witness such a momentous occasion. “I’m so proud for North Carolina.” Sec.